1. Septuagint, 1 Maccabees, 6.55-6.63, 10.52-10.58, 10.61, 10.64-10.65, 11.1-11.13, 11.18 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 6.55. Then Lysias heard that Philip, whom King Antiochus while still living had appointed to bring up Antiochus his son to be king 6.56. had returned from Persia and Media with the forces that had gone with the king, and that he was trying to seize control of the government. 6.57. So he quickly gave orders to depart, and said to the king, to the commanders of the forces, and to the men, "We daily grow weaker, our food supply is scant, the place against which we are fighting is strong, and the affairs of the kingdom press urgently upon us. 6.58. Now then let us come to terms with these men, and make peace with them and with all their nation 6.59. and agree to let them live by their laws as they did before; for it was on account of their laws which we abolished that they became angry and did all these things. 6.60. The speech pleased the king and the commanders, and he sent to the Jews an offer of peace, and they accepted it. 6.61. So the king and the commanders gave them their oath. On these conditions the Jews evacuated the stronghold. 6.62. But when the king entered Mount Zion and saw what a strong fortress the place was, he broke the oath he had sworn and gave orders to tear down the wall all around. 6.63. Then he departed with haste and returned to Antioch. He found Philip in control of the city, but he fought against him, and took the city by force. 10.52. Since I have returned to my kingdom and have taken my seat on the throne of my fathers, and established my rule -- for I crushed Demetrius and gained control of our country; 10.53. I met him in battle, and he and his army were crushed by us, and we have taken our seat on the throne of his kingdom -- 10.54. now therefore let us establish friendship with one another; give me now your daughter as my wife, and I will become your son-in-law, and will make gifts to you and to her in keeping with your position. 10.55. Ptolemy the king replied and said, "Happy was the day on which you returned to the land of your fathers and took your seat on the throne of their kingdom. 10.56. And now I will do for you as you wrote, but meet me at Ptolemais, so that we may see one another, and I will become your father-in-law, as you have said. 10.57. So Ptolemy set out from Egypt, he and Cleopatra his daughter, and came to Ptolemais in the one hundred and sixty-second year. 10.58. Alexander the king met him, and Ptolemy gave him Cleopatra his daughter in marriage, and celebrated her wedding at Ptolemais with great pomp, as kings do. 10.61. A group of pestilent men from Israel, lawless men, gathered together against him to accuse him; but the king paid no attention to them. 10.64. And when his accusers saw the honor that was paid him, in accordance with the proclamation, and saw him clothed in purple, they all fled. 10.65. Thus the king honored him and enrolled him among his chief friends, and made him general and governor of the province. 11.1. Then the king of Egypt gathered great forces, like the sand by the seashore, and many ships; and he tried to get possession of Alexanders kingdom by trickery and add it to his own kingdom. 11.2. He set out for Syria with peaceable words, and the people of the cities opened their gates to him and went to meet him, for Alexander the king had commanded them to meet him, since he was Alexanders father-in-law. 11.3. But when Ptolemy entered the cities he stationed forces as a garrison in each city. 11.4. When he approached Azotus, they showed him the temple of Dagon burned down, and Azotus and its suburbs destroyed, and the corpses lying about, and the charred bodies of those whom Jonathan had burned in the war, for they had piled them in heaps along his route. 11.5. They also told the king what Jonathan had done, to throw blame on him; but the king kept silent. 11.6. Jonathan met the king at Joppa with pomp, and they greeted one another and spent the night there. 11.7. And Jonathan went with the king as far as the river called Eleutherus; then he returned to Jerusalem. 11.8. So King Ptolemy gained control of the coastal cities as far as Seleucia by the sea, and he kept devising evil designs against Alexander. 11.9. He sent envoys to Demetrius the king, saying, "Come, let us make a covet with each other, and I will give you in marriage my daughter who was Alexanders wife, and you shall reign over your fathers kingdom. 11.10. For I now regret that I gave him my daughter, for he has tried to kill me. 11.11. He threw blame on Alexander because he coveted his kingdom. 11.12. So he took his daughter away from him and gave her to Demetrius. He was estranged from Alexander, and their enmity became manifest. 11.13. Then Ptolemy entered Antioch and put on the crown of Asia. Thus he put two crowns upon his head, the crown of Egypt and that of Asia. 11.18. But King Ptolemy died three days later, and his troops in the strongholds were killed by the inhabitants of the strongholds. |
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2. Septuagint, 2 Maccabees, 4.5, 4.21, 4.23, 9.23, 10.9-10.10, 13.23 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 4.5. So he betook himself to the king, not accusing his fellow citizens but having in view the welfare, both public and private, of all the people.' 4.21. When Apollonius the son of Menestheus was sent to Egypt for the coronation of Philometor as king, Antiochus learned that Philometor had become hostile to his government, and he took measures for his own security. Therefore upon arriving at Joppa he proceeded to Jerusalem.' 4.23. After a period of three years Jason sent Menelaus, the brother of the previously mentioned Simon, to carry the money to the king and to complete the records of essential business.' 9.23. but I observed that my father, on the occasions when he made expeditions into the upper country, appointed his successor,' 10.9. Such then was the end of Antiochus, who was called Epiphanes.' 10.10. Now we will tell what took place under Antiochus Eupator, who was the son of that ungodly man, and will give a brief summary of the principal calamities of the wars.' 13.23. he got word that Philip, who had been left in charge of the government, had revolted in Antioch; he was dismayed, called in the Jews, yielded and swore to observe all their rights, settled with them and offered sacrifice, honored the sanctuary and showed generosity to the holy place.' |
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3. Josephus Flavius, Jewish Antiquities, 13.65, 13.351-13.355 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 13.65. “Having done many and great things for you in the affairs of the war, by the assistance of God, and that in Celesyria and Phoenicia, I came at length with the Jews to Leontopolis, and to other places of your nation 13.351. but Ptolemy went out of Syria, and made haste unto Egypt, supposing that he should find it destitute of an army, and soon take it, though he failed of his hopes. At this time Chelcias, one of Cleopatra’s generals, happened to die in Celesyria, as he was in pursuit of Ptolemy. 13.352. 2. When Cleopatra heard of her son’s attempt, and that his Egyptian expedition did not succeed according to his expectations, she sent thither part of her army, and drove him out of that country; so when he was returned out of Egypt again, he abode during the winter at Gaza 13.353. in which time Cleopatra took the garrison that was in Ptolemais by siege, as well as the city; and when Alexander came to her, he gave her presents, and such marks of respect as were but proper, since under the miseries he endured by Ptolemy he had no other refuge but her. Now there were some of her friends who persuaded her to seize Alexander, and to overrun and take possession of the country, and not to sit still and see such a multitude of brave Jews subject to one man. 13.354. But Aias’s counsel was contrary to theirs, who said that “she would do an unjust action if she deprived a man that was her ally of that authority which belonged to him, and this a man who is related to us; for,” said he, “I would not have thee ignorant of this, that what injustice thou dost to him will make all us that are Jews to be thy enemies.” 13.355. This desire of Aias Cleopatra complied with, and did no injury to Alexander, but made a league of mutual assistance with him at Scythopolis, a city of Celesyria. |
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